The Black Powder Armory · Chapter 10
Blades and Boarding Weapons
A black powder firearm is empty after one shot, so every fight in this book is finished by hand. This chapter holds the hand weapons that The Fantasy Armory does not, and says which of its entries to use for the rest.
Damage printed as +X is added to the wielder's Might.
Skill: Melee, except the Grapnel and Lasso (Light Ranged).
Boarding Pike
Half-pike, sea pike
+2 3 Engaged 3
Melee 30 Common Thrusting Reach, Defensive 1
A seven-foot ash staff with a plain spike, racked round the masts of a ship. It is the weapon for holding a rail against boarders.
Plug Bayonet
Bayonne dagger
+2 3 Engaged 1
Melee 20 Military Thrusting Defensive 1
A dagger whose grip jams into a musket's muzzle. It turns the gun into a spear. While it is fitted, the gun cannot be loaded or fired. Fitting or removing it is a maneuver.
Socket Bayonet
Ring bayonet, sword bayonet, spike bayonet
+2 3 Engaged 1
Melee 40 Military Thrusting Defensive 1
A blade on a sleeve that fits round the muzzle. The gun loads and fires with it fixed, which is why the pike left the battlefield.
Clubbed Musket
Butt stroke, reversed musket
+2 4 Engaged —
Melee 0 Common Crushing Disorient 1
A fired long gun swung by the barrel. It costs no maneuver to switch to. A pistol used the same way deals Might+1.
Sword Cane
Sword stick, tuck cane
+1 2 Engaged 1
Melee 110 Restricted Thrusting Defensive 1, Concealable 3
A narrow blade hidden in a walking stick. Concealable 3 while sheathed.
Grapnel
Grappling hook, boarding hook
+1 5 Short 2
Light Ranged 25 Common Thrusting Ensnare 1, Limited Ammo 1
A four-pronged hook on a line. It is a tool for binding two ships together and for climbing. Thrown at a person it deals Might+1 and, for 2 Boons, hooks them (Ensnare 1).
Lasso
Lariat, reata, catch rope
— — Short 1
Light Ranged 10 Common — Ensnare 2, Limited Ammo 1
A running noose on thirty feet of rope. It deals no damage. On a hit, spend 2 Boons: the target is Immobilized until it breaks free with a Hard Athletics or Reflexes check, or cuts the rope with an action.
Trench Knife
Knuckle knife, French nail, trench dagger
+1 3 Engaged 1
Melee 40 Military Thrusting Vicious 1
A fighting knife with a knuckle-guard grip, made for night raids in 1915 and after.
Trench Club
Raiding club, knobkerrie, trench mace
+2 4 Engaged 2
Melee 5 Common Crushing Vicious 1
A turned club studded with hobnails or cast with a lead head. Silent, cheap, and made in every company workshop on the Western Front.
Names for Fantasy Armory Weapons
Use these entries from The Fantasy Armory unchanged.
| Weapon of the period | Use the Fantasy Armory entry |
|---|---|
| Cutlass, hanger, cuttoe | Falchion |
| Cavalry sabre, naval officer's sword | Sabre |
| Rapier, smallsword, court sword | Rapier |
| Broadsword, backsword, mortuary sword | Arming Sword |
| Dirk, bowie knife, sheath knife | Dagger |
| Clasp knife, jack-knife | Knife |
| Marlinspike, bodkin | Stiletto |
| Boarding axe, tomahawk | Hatchet |
| Belaying pin, cudgel, gunstock club | Cudgel |
| Handspike, capstan bar | Quarterstaff |
| Cavalry lance | Lance |
| Halberd, spontoon, sergeant's partisan | Halberd |
| Bullwhip, cat-o'-nine-tails | Whip |
| Fishing net, cargo net | Net |
| Harpoon, whaling iron | Harpoon |
| Target, buckler | Round Shield, Buckler |
Bows and crossbows are in The Ranged Armory. Both stayed in use at sea and on the frontier long after the musket arrived.
